Brooke Cersosimo’s takeaways:
Another big fourth quarter for Denver. The Broncos have been a fourth-quarter team all season long, and Week 5 was no different. Denver scored 10 points through the first three quarters (zero in the third) and trailed, 17-10, at the beginning of the fourth. That’s when the fun started for Sean Payton’s team. The defense, even without its top two cornerbacks (Patrick Surtain II and Riley Moss), absolutely punished the banged-up Chargers offense, making Justin Herbert pay for every slight indecision and hero effort. Los Angeles had five offensive possessions in that frame, resulting in a punt, turnover on downs on a stuff of Herbert, Herbert fumble, Herbert interception and a game-ending sack by cornerback Jha’Quan Jackson. Those Chargers drives went for a total of 19 net yards on 19 plays with two first downs. The Broncos offense also played its part late, taking advantage of the defense’s fourth-down stop in Charger territory and scoring its second touchdown of the day on a 5-yard Bo Nix pass to Courtland Sutton to tie the game. The Broncos then earned consecutive Wil Lutz field goals thanks to massive defensive takeaways, including a forced fumble by Zach Allen and a Que Robinson recovery and perhaps the easiest pick of Brandon Jones‘ career. Sure, it’s nice winning with some late-game excitement, but it would be nicer if Denver could figure out a way to play this way for more than 15 minutes.
New play-caller, same Broncos offense. The Broncos’ offense didn’t get better results in the immediate aftermath of Sean Payton taking over play-calling duties from offensive coordinator Davis Webb. Entering Sunday’s contest, Denver ranked 28th in offensive points scored (16.8 per game) and 28th in total offense (280.3 yards per game), per Tru Media, while Bo Nix averaged just 6.2 air yards per attempt, second-fewest among qualified QBs. Sure, the Broncos scored 23 points, but it wasn’t without major help from the defense. Of their 13 drives, five began in L.A. territory (scoring on four of them) and only one of two drives were eight or more plays (the rest were five or fewer). Denver was outgained by its division foe (224 yards to L.A.’s 237) and converted once on 12 third-down tries. Nix still struggled to connect with his receivers and stretch the field, completing 59.3% of his pass attempts for 123 yards and one touchdown. His 5.1 air yards per attempt also underwhelmed, as he attempted just four throws of 10 or more air yards and completed two. Payton was patient with the run game, which was stagnant for most of the day but got some good gains late to help secure the win. Even with the victory, Sunday didn’t feel like a win — or even a step forward — for this offense.
Injuries, injuries and more injuries for L.A. Justin Herbert’s 100th NFL start saw him working with a plethora of backups. For starters, his offensive line had four rookies: 63rd overall pick and center Jake Slaughter and three others (left tackle Travis Burke, left guard Logan Taylor and right tackle Alex Harkey) making their first NFL starts. Fifth-year right guard Cole Strange was the other starter. This offense was also without its top two receivers, Quentin Johnston and Ladd McConkey, who was active but clearly didn’t have any intention of playing as he was often seen without his helmet. Tre Harris (hamstring) also exited the game early, leaving Marquez Valdes-Scantling, Derius Davis and Theo Wease Jr. as WR options. All this to say, nothing came easy for the Chargers, who scored three first-half points before coming to life in the third quarter with a pair of touchdowns. Credit goes to Herbert, who gave his team a much-needed boost after halftime by extending plays with his legs and finding targets despite being under constant duress. The highlight of the day was easily the 14-play, 73-yard touchdown drive in which the Chargers converted four third downs (after going 1 of 6 in the first half) and Herbert finding tight end Hayden Rucci for a 7-yard score to tie the game at 10. Two drives later, Kimani Vidal hit the turbo jets for an impressive 42-yard score to give Los Angeles the lead, but a brutal fourth quarter sank Harbaugh’s group again. Herbert finished 14-of-24 passing for 121 yards with one TD, one INT and two fumbles (one lost). He’s doing all that he can with what he’s got. Unfortunately, the bye isn’t for another two weeks and a trip to Kansas City (4-0) is on tap.
Next Gen Stats Insight for Broncos-Chargers (via NFL Pro): Entering Week 5 against the Chargers, the Broncos had recorded a 37.4% success rate (sixth-lowest) and 9.6% explosive play rate (third-lowest) with Davis Webb as the play-caller. With Sean Payton taking over play-calling responsibilities in Week 5, the Broncos’ offense posted a 27.5% success rate and 2.5% explosive play rate through the first three quarters — on pace for their lowest marks of the season. However, the Broncos recorded a 47.1% success rate and 11.8% explosive play rate in the fourth quarter.
NFL Research: The Chargers have lost eight straight games, including last season’s wild-card loss. The last time head coach Jim Harbaugh was involved with a seven-plus-game losing streak was in his final two seasons as a player in 2000 and 2001, when his Chargers and Panthers each went 1-15. Harbaugh never played a game for Carolina.